NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS ® Welcome to... The 2003 Mediation Training Seminar

Negotiation Skills in Mediation René Stemple Ellis

Why Negotiation?  Mediation is facilitated negotiation  Mediators negotiate with parties  Mediators employ negotiation skills, such as: gathering information thinking outside of the box generating/assessing options BATNA risk analysis distinguishing interests versus positions

Negotiation Models  Competitive  Cooperative  Problem-solving

 Adversarial; contemplates win/lose  High initial demand  Few or small concessions  Threats or arguments  High economic results Competitive

 Advantages -- high economic results  Disadvantages -- lack of sufficient information and increased competitiveness does not increase negotiator profits  May ignore relationship issues

Cooperative  Reasonable opening offers and arguments  Based on perceptions of fairness and justice  Unilateral concessions to encourage reciprocation

 Advantages -- more durable  Process less likely to break down  Strengthens relationship  Disadvantages -- lack of objective standards may be less satisfying and difficult to justify Cooperative

Problem-Solving  Joint effort to meet parties’ interests  Fisher and Ury -- Getting to Yes

 Advantages -- many, including improved relationships, communication, legitimacy, and risk analysis  Disadvantages -- exchange of information might leave party vulnerable to competitive tactics Problem-Solving

Mediators and Barriers to Effective Negotiation  Emotional issues Active listening and face-to-face discussion  Cognitive dissonance; selective perception Restate the view; role reversal  Reactive devaluation Externalize conversations; use hypotheticals

Mediators and Barriers to Effective Negotiation  Loss aversion Interject a more reasoned analysis of costs and benefit, and reframe  Principle Question vindication and point out positives of settling